


The Strongest Girl They Knew

by UsaChan1997



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Carapace, Comedy, Drama & Romance, F/M, Guardian!Marinette, LadyNoir - Freeform, Post-Canon, Public Reveal, Queen Bee, Rena Rouge, Season 3 Spoilers, Viperion - Freeform, ryuko - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-26
Updated: 2020-03-15
Packaged: 2021-02-27 06:20:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,524
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22422493
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UsaChan1997/pseuds/UsaChan1997
Summary: When Marinette's identity is revealed on Lila's livestream, Paris is thrown into chaos. Marinette, in hiding and full of regret, now has two options-- she can choose a new Ladybug and forget everything, or she can break tradition and return to defeat Hawkmoth once and for all. Hawkmoth, for one, won't give her much time to decide.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Alya Césaire/Nino Lahiffe
Comments: 64
Kudos: 327
Collections: January 2020 - Exchange, Lila Anon Support Group, Miraculous Revealed





	1. Prologue: Ladybug: Live!

**Author's Note:**

  * For [WonderBat91939](https://archiveofourown.org/users/WonderBat91939/gifts).



> This fic takes into account everything in Season 3 EXCEPT Hawkmoth finding out the various Heroes' identities and Chloe's betrayal. Cool? Cool. Hope you enjoy :)

“The akuma is on the move! Are you catching this, guys?” In contrast to the question she posed to her followers, Lila Rossi kept the camera trained squarely on her face. As the sounds of the akuma’s destructive power echoed in the background, Lila stayed within the shelter of the alley near the Dupain-Cheng bakery, maintaining a brave smile as the shocked emojis and hearts poured in through the chat. “Thank you, everyone. It is scary, but in times like these, we have to be brave. Ladybug told me that the last time we had brunch together in London. In her civilian form, she likes to—whoops, I really shouldn’t gossip.”

The chat exploded: _uk Ladybug as a civilian? WHO IS SHE??? What is she like out of costume? What does she order at brunch? Is she dating Chat Noir? Guuurl, spill aaall the tea!_

A smirk played at Lila’s lips. “Come on, dear viewers. You know I couldn’t out my _best friend_ —“

Her sentence was interrupted by a flash of light, and while her face obstructed the damage being repaired, Lila let out a victorious cheer, then a chuckle about how spooky she looked backlit by the red glow. “You guys are so silly, I do not look like Satan. Ha, I know it’s a joke! Yeah, I think it’s totally tragic that there’ve been so many akumas lately—Aww, thank you, FluffyKat22, you noticed my new brand of conditioner. My hair is pretty shiny, huh?” She ran her fingers through her long tresses, posing cutely for the livestream as she plugged her sponsor.

“M’Lady, wait!”

“Chat, I’m sorry, I’m about to transform back. Can we talk about this later?”

Lila’s eyebrows shot up at the muffled voices overhead. She inched closer, and once their footsteps came to a halt, she went absolutely still and silent, bringing a finger to her lips and shooting a cheeky wink at the camera.

“Ladybug, I’m worried you’re overworking yourself.” It was faint, but she could just make out Chat Noir’s voice. She wondered how well her phone’s built-in mic was catching it. “Please, let the other heroes and I pick up some slack while you’re training. It’s the least we can do, and I’m sure Master—"

“There is no Master anymore, Chat.” Ladybug’s reply was strained, accentuated by the steady beeping of her earrings. “Just me. Now it’s my responsibility to keep everyone safe—”

Chat let out a frustrated huff, his next statement was clear as day. “Are you listening to yourself? Since when did this become a solo operation? Don’t you trust me? Trust your friends?”

“This isn’t about trust!” The beeping grew louder, more erratic. “The more any of you know, the more danger you are in. We will talk about this later, I’m leaving!” Ladybug’s footsteps pounded again, and Lila was poised to comment on the nature of their lover’s quarrel to her rabidly typing viewers when there was a dull thud behind her.

“Tikki, spots off.”

A light began to flash, and before Ladybug even realized there is someone else in the alley, Lila had switched to her rear camera, capturing the tail-end of the transformation for thousands of hungry eyes to see.

“Oh my god,” Lila’s mouth dropped open as the light dimmed and the spots faded. Her hand was shaking, but she still managed to keep the camera pointed at the frozen, terrified girl in front of her. “L-Ladybug is… Marinette Dupain-Cheng!”


	2. A City Lost

"Ladybug is... Marinette Dupain-Cheng!"

**One Week Later**

“Cataclysm!”

The villain’s barrette crumbled under Chat’s touch, as akumatized objects always had. As everything did. He was quick to leap after the butterfly, but not fast enough. It nearly got away when Carapace threw up his shelter, blocking the akuma’s escape long enough for Chat to corner it, jar in hand. Without Ladybug, trapping them was the best the remaining heroes could do.

Back to her normal self, the little girl, Lucie, glanced between the turtle and cat heroes, confused. “Did… Did Ladybug save me?” she asked, hope shining in her big doe eyes.

Chat deflated. Always this question. Always the same sad answer. “In spirit,” he piped. “Ladybug isn’t here right now, but you have to be brave, okay? That way, when she comes back, she’ll be so proud of the citizens of Paris.”

Lucie held his gaze for a moment, then surprised him with a tight hug. “You miss her, too, right, Chat Noir?”

Chat was taken aback. He felt his eyelids start to burn as he patted the girl on the head. Ladybug. No, Marinette. He could see her face, pale and horrified, in his mind. It didn’t help that Lila’s video played on loop on every channel. “I do.”

“Chat Noir! Chat Noir!” The moment of quiet was shattered by the approach of a horde of local and international reporters, paparazzi and all manner of bloggers, with the notable exception of one Alya Cesaire. Now that there was no immediate danger, they were here again, chasing any changes to a story that grew more and more bitter in its repetition.

Chat’s forlorn gaze met Carapace’s and the turtle hero flashed his friend a wan smile. “Don’t worry, Tomcat. Rena has our back on this one. Now, let’s disappear.”

It took a moment for his brain to process, but when Chat realized what that meant, he let out a relieved laugh and bid Lucy a covert goodbye as they slunk into the shadows. Glancing briefly behind him, Chat caught sight of a mirage of the two boys, fielding the press’ queries and exuding positivity. “Rena’s power is amazing,” he mused.

“Dude, right? The only inaccuracy is that there are no bags under our eyes, and we have nothing more important to do than answering the same questions for the twentieth time.” Carapace stopped to check a message on his communicator, expression morphing into a frown.

“How is the rescue team holding up?” Chat asked, his stomach crawling with guilt. The past few days, he had been letting Queen Bee, Ryuko and Viperion handle the civilians endangered by the akuma attacks. He had joined in at first, but the constant switch between running interference on active akumas and accounting for collateral damage resulted in a fainting spell that nearly put his own identity in danger. The others had unanimously agreed that Chat needed sleep, or there would be nothing left to repair when Ladybug returned.

“They’re doing okay, but I’m going to re-transform and lend them a hand.”

“I could—”

“Nope,” Carapace shook his head and shoved him in the opposite direction. “Go home and rest, Adrien. I’ll call if anything urgent comes up. Don’t want your dad getting suspicious enough to raid your room and find all those butterflies.”

Chat couldn’t bring himself to laugh at the joke, but he waved as his friend departed and he made his way home. It still felt foreign, Nino addressing him as a civilian while they were both transformed. So much had changed in so short a time, and he could barely keep up.

When Ladybug’s identity was compromised, Rena Rouge and Carapace had felt it best to reveal themselves to Chat, since he was the one with the most information about the Guardians, the Miraculous, and where Ladybug might reappear. Viperion and Ryuko had approached him separately with similar intentions. Chloe, though she hadn’t reached out directly, kept the Bee Signal on day and night, as if to tell him she was waiting for his next move.

Overwhelmed, Chat had decided that it would be necessary for everyone to stay in contact, in and out of civilian form, to be ready for Hawkmoth’s attacks at a moment’s notice. So, he had gathered all five of the part-timers together, thus ending in one afternoon the Guardians’ millennia-spanning tradition of strictly anonymous heroes. Adrien wasn’t sure if it was the right choice, or if Ladybug—rather, Marinette—would even approve. But he knew such rules were meant to keep them safe, and, in Ladybug’s absence, that wasn’t their priority anymore.

It was a lot to process, Adrien’s heroic allies were secretly his friends and classmates the whole time. In retrospect, it made sense to him that Marinette would choose people she trusted to wield the Miraculous. Even so, none of them, himself included, were afforded much time to unpack what all this really meant. They were more concerned with holding the line, protecting their city—it was all they could do.

Still, knowing the truth, fear, regret and unanswered questions swirled within Adrien’s chest. Where did she go? Was she safe? Could he have done anything differently to lighten the immense burden balanced on her slender shoulders for so long? Most hauntingly of all, would Marinette ever choose to be Ladybug again, under the circumstances? These days he barely slept, and the nightmare he couldn’t escape was an image of Marinette leaving him forever, giving up the Miracle Box, their shared memories, and passing guardianship to a new Ladybug.

Just the thought of it made him want to cry.

Banishing such gloomy scenarios, Chat did his practiced dance to avoid the security cameras littering the grounds of the Agreste mansion and slipped through his window, his shoulders immediately sagging with exhaustion once his transformation waned.

“Adrien, you seem beat,” Plagg chimed, unusually affectionate as he nuzzled the boy’s cheek. “You should take a catnap. Better yet, have a bite of my invigorating camembert!”

“I’ll pass on the cheese, but thanks, Plagg,” Adrien gave him a pat, heading straight for his closet, rummaging for a well-hidden cardboard box and opening the lid. It was filling up quickly, rows and rows of caged, hellish butterflies languidly flapped their wings at him as he added the newest akuma to the collection. He would need to find someplace else to keep them if he didn’t want the house staff to notice.

“So, sleep, then?” Plagg landed on Adrien’s head, poking him with his tiny paws. “Otherwise everyone will mistake you the wielder of the Racoon Miraculous.”

“Cut it out,” Adrien chuckled as the kwami ruffled his hair, freezing as he heard a light knock. Shoving the box out of sight and motioning for Plagg to hide, he hastily ran for the door, flinching a bit when Nathalie opened it herself. Adrien checked his peripherals to make sure Plagg was out of sight, but Nathalie’s eyes were fixed on her tablet, anyway. “Nathalie,” he greeted, “Ca va bien?”

“I am well,” her gaze flicked to the boy, appraising. She must have known what he was curious to hear. “Your father will be in Japan for the next week. Also, your Fencing practice, Chinese lessons and photoshoots have all been cancelled in light of the recent volume of akumatizations.”

Adrien’s face fell. “I… I see. Did Father have anything specific to say before he left?”

Nathalie maintained her composure, but Adrien didn’t miss the hint of worry in the curve of her brow at the sight of his pallid complexion. “He bid you continue your studies at home and stay safe.” She extended a hand to his forehead. “Hm, no fever. But if you feel unwell, please contact your bodyguard. I will be indisposed for most of the week maintaining the company while your father is away.”

Adrien nodded. “Thank you, Nathalie.”

The door closed. Adrien flopped onto the couch and mindlessly switched the TV on. _No lessons, huh?_ That certainly was helpful. But he couldn’t bring himself to be happy about it. He pulled out his phone, the endless analysis and conspiracy theories about Ladybug faded into white noise as he checked his messages.

_Nino: You’d better be asleep, bro ~wink~ When you get up, call me._

_Chloe: Have you seen all these bogus conspiracies? Ladybug is a Russian spy, the city of Paris will be sued for child endangerment, the akuma attacks are all faked with special effects… Ridiculous, utterly ridiculous! ~eye-roll~_

_Luka: I know you’ve been working hard. Hang in there. If you can’t sleep, here’s a link to a really good guided meditation—_

_Kagami: Adrien… I hope you’re okay._

He wanted to have the energy to respond, but when his eyes wandered to his unseen texts to her, when he stared at the log of failed calls, his head felt heavy and his eyes were stinging and his vision swum. Tossing his phone aside, he buried his face in a throw pillow, the message he wished he could send her repeating like the words of a cherished song as he drifted off.

_Marinette, we’re all waiting for you. Please, come back._

~~~

“I have informed Adrien of your ‘absence’, Sir.”

Nathalie’s voice echoed in the cavernous space of the garden, but it didn’t immediately reach Gabriel’s ears. His mind was too occupied, overflowing with possible schemes to bring back what eluded him. She tried again. “Sir, I have informed Adrien—”

“Marinette Dupain-Cheng.” He looked up, mouth contorted into a sneer. “Have you found her yet?”

Nathalie bowed her head. “No, Sir. There are no flight records out of Paris containing her name, no eyewitness sightings. Her parents are laying low, they have given no comment to the media at this time. It is likely she used a Miraculous to escape unnoticed.”

Gabriel clenched his fist, and the clod of soil clutched in his gloved hand burst. Irritated, he watched each granule slip through his fingers and fall back into the flowerbed. “A child. The new Guardian is merely a child. For the last two years, we have been continuously foiled, outwitted and outmatched by a _sixteen-year-old girl_.”

In contrast with the venom lacing Gabriel’s tone, Nathalie’s reply was measured, deadpan. “Forgive me, but I believe this situation is largely in our favor, Sir.”

“Go on.”

Nathalie adjusted the glasses on the bridge of her nose. “We have succeeded in turning Ladybug’s reveal into a national scandal, instilling fear in the hearts of her supporters. Now, we are primed to approach things more… personally. Marinette Dupain-Cheng has been under our noses all along. She has been close to Adrien, worked with our brand—she has been a target, in the past. In other words, we know every weakness to exploit.”

Gabriel grit his teeth at the thought of Ladybug stepping foot in his house, buzzing around his son like an unwelcome pest. He scowled at the flowers, remembering so many missed opportunities to end everything quickly. To fulfill his greatest wish. “And what if she picks a new Guardian? A new Ladybug?”

Nathalie leaned closer to focus his attention on her again, confidence unwavering. “With her sense of justice, I find that unlikely. Even if she does relinquish her position, we’ll be facing an unstable amateur. It’s a win-win.”

“You don’t think she would give up guardianship?” Gabriel raised a skeptical eyebrow.

“No,” Nathalie placed her hands on Gabriel’s hunched shoulders, gently working on the knots of tension there with practiced fingers. Though he couldn’t see her face, Gabriel could hear the smile in his assistant’s voice as she spoke encouraging words. “I think she’s indecisive and unsure. I think she’s hiding. And if she doesn’t show herself—”

Gabriel caught on, his sneer widening into a full-on grin. “We will drag her out by force.”


	3. Omens

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was very emotional to write, I hope it turned out well and y'all like the direction it's going :) Thank you for such a positive initial response, I appreciate every comment. The MLB fandom is one of my favs <3
> 
> Much love,
> 
> ~Usa

For the seventeenth time in the past half-hour, Alya Cesaire checked her phone. It had become a habit this past week, as if somehow a message from Marinette would go unnoticed, even though she kept the sound and vibrations on at all times.

Nino rested his head on her shoulder, rubbing his thumb over her knuckles in soothing circles. “She’ll come back, Al.”

The knot in Alya’s stomach tightened as she leaned against him. Would she have come back if she were in Marinette’s shoes? Running herself ragged for two years, facing constant danger on top of trying to have a normal life, only to be outed by Lila’s Insta stream, of all things? As brave as she wanted to be, Alya thought she might hide, too. She couldn’t stop remembering all the times she’d scolded Marinette for sleeping in, jokingly called her clumsy or airheaded for having to leave suddenly. She hadn’t believed her on occasions where she’d accused Lila of lying about Ladybug. If only she had known.

As if Nino could read her mind, he squeezed her hand. “This isn’t your fault, okay? None of us knew any better.”

Alya’s face scrunched up with unshed tears, and she was about to argue that it didn’t matter, she _could_ have been a better friend to Marinette, when the metro announced their stop and the car came to a halt. Nino tugged her to her feet, doing his level best to brighten her mood as they made their way to a faded, squat building with a towering iron gate out front. They double-checked the address. Since this had to be the place, they decided to make contact, taking a closer look at what appeared to be the stone-age equivalent of an intercom.

“This thing looks ancient,” Nino murmured. “You think it works?”

“I guess we’ll find out. Hello?” Alya tried.

There was some static, but in a few seconds, a gruff voice crackled to life. “What?”

“We’re, um, looking for Tom Dupain and Sabine Cheng?” Alya chirped, unusually nervous in the face of such a terse greeting.

“You’re ‘um, looking’ for them?” The voice mocked.

“Y-Yes…?” Alya shared a glance with Nino, starting to wonder if they’d gotten the place wrong after all.

“Then why does it sound like a question when you say it? That’s not how it’s done. Try again.”

“We’re looking for Tom and Sabine,” Alya repeated, careful to make it sound like a statement this time.

“Better,” the grizzled voice hummed, “but you should have used their full names out of respect, youngster. That’s how it’s done.”

“I… see.” Alya’s tone remained achingly polite, but she was glad the intercom was audio-only. If not, that stickler would have caught perhaps the biggest Nino eye-roll in recorded history. “So, can we see them?”

“Non. Go away.”

Alya’s jaw went slack. “Please, Monsieur,” Nino pleaded, “We’re friends of Marinette and we wanted to—”

“Marinette?” It seemed they had struck a nerve. “How _dare_ you pretend to be close with my granddaughter. Are you a reporter? Get out of here before I call the police—” The voice raged, and they could make out a rising commotion on the other end, the unmistakable clamoring of pots and pans, followed by placating voices that definitely belonged to Marinette’s parents. Before long, the gate opened to reveal Sabine Cheng.

Alya’s guilt and apprehension had crystalized in the lump in her throat as they followed Marinette’s mother to the door, but with one smile, Sabine banished those feelings. “Alya, Nino, it’s good to see you.” She wrapped her daughter’s best friend in a tight hug, warmly clasped Nino’s hand, and ushered them both inside to a small, round dining table. Tom poked his head out of the kitchen, still sporting the trademark flour in his moustache that meant he had been working.

“Good afternoon, kiddos! I apologize for my father, Rolland, he can be a bit of a curmudgeon—”

“Quit your dawdling!” the grumpy voice, Tom’s father, apparently, bellowed.

“Anyway,” Tom gave a little chuckle. “If you’ll excuse us, we’re whipping up some lunch. Hope you’re hungry for pizza!” Before Rolland could complain anymore, he slipped out of sight.

“Here we are,” Sabine set down three glasses of water before joining them at the table, the dark circles under her eyes betraying exhaustion. Alya and Nino were both reluctant to say much, quietly sipping their drinks, when Sabine cut to the chase. “When you called, I assumed you wanted to know about Marinette. Is that right?”

“So, you’ve heard from her?” Alya tried her best to rein in her eagerness, but she couldn’t help but to lean closer.

“We have. The night of the reveal, she disappeared, didn’t even leave us a message. She must have been so scared and ashamed,” Sabine took a dainty sip of water, fingers rising from the ice-cold glass to rest at her temples. “Within a few hours, we got a call. Marinette is in the U.K. with the previous Guardian, trying to decide whether she should return home.”

“W-What do you mean, ‘decide’? She has to come back!” Nino’s cup hit the table a bit too hard at his outbirst, and he sheepishly dabbed at some stray drops of water. “S-Sorry.”

“It’s alright,” Sabine sighed. “I don’t know all the details myself, but Marinette said that giving up her miraculous and finding a new Guardian might be the only option. If that does happen, Tom and I don’t intend to keep her here. It would be… painful for her to stay.”

Alya let that sink in. A new Ladybug. Marinette leaving. The part-timers didn’t know much about the intricacies of the Miraculous, but there was one thing that had jumped out in Chat’s explanation. “Then, her memories…”

Sabine laid a comforting hand on the girl’s arm. “Things do look bleak, don’t they? But my daughter was raised surrounded by many loving people. Friends, family. She may have a lot to deal with for one so young, but I know she’ll make the right choice. Don’t you think?”

“I do,” the words came out before Alya’s brain could catch up to them, purely on instinct. It was clear to her then that, of course, she still believed in Marinette. She was the strongest person Alya knew. And, on top of everything—

“She won’t be alone.” Nino finished her thought aloud. “When Marinette does come back, we’ll be waiting.”

At their words, Sabine’s lips turned upward; she bowed her head respectfully to the two of them. “Thank you.”

~~~

**One Week Earlier**

The night the Wang Fu’s former pupil showed up at Marianne Lenoir’s door, clouds stirred in a dark sky and the winds rattled the grove of Aspens surrounding the house. The feeling of an upcoming storm had set in the old woman’s bones, she had broken her hand mirror that morning, and Fu had opened an umbrella before crossing the threshold on his trip to buy groceries. Nothing but bad omens.

And Marinette, barely standing, was the culmination of all of them.

She was sobbing, shaking, clutching a spotted backpack in her arms and not in the headspace to form coherent sentences. “Please,” she whimpered. “Please, I have to... relinquish....”

Marianne rushed her inside, wrapped their fluffiest guest towels around the girl’s shoulders, pressing a mug of steaming oolong into her hands, letting her tears soak through the chest pocket of her flannel pajamas. She combed her fingers through damp hair until everything was tearfully explained, until the flood ran dry, at least for the moment.

“They all know.” Marinette’s voice was barely a whisper. “I’ve failed as Ladybug. Everything Master taught me, It’s all—” the end of her sentence was choked, and she hid her face in her hands.

“Have you told your parents where you are, sweetheart?” Marianne asked. Marinette shook her head, her red-rimmed eyes fell to her lap. Marianne assumed her phone was either dead or off. She sighed. “Tell me their number, and I’ll call from our landline to let them know you’re safe. Okay?” Marinette nodded.

When she had finished the call, Marianne made her way soundlessly back to the living room, stopping in the doorway at the new, tense atmosphere.

Fu, who had been sitting silently through this whole episode, his features etched with an amount of worry and despair that his conscious mind couldn’t quite comprehend, was finally speaking up. “Marinette,” his gaze focused on her ears, uncharacteristically bare. “I’m sorry I cannot be of more help to you.”

Marinette shook her head vigorously. “No, Mast—I mean, Monsieur Fu. Don’t…. It’s not your fault.”

“Why did you come here, Marinette?” Fu’s tone was soft, free of judgement; and yet, it cut straight to the heart of things. “Did you seek me out instinctually? Were you searching for a distant place to hide? Or, perhaps, did you think Marianne, the one person who knows my every secret, would be the best choice for a new Guardian?” Marianne’s heartbeat quickened. _Could this be true?_

For a moment, the girl was stunned speechless. She bit her lip. “Maybe… all three,” she admitted.

Fu let out a sad smile. “You intend to give up your power.”

Marinette curled in on herself, her tears had begun to flow anew. “I-I… I’m not sure I have a choice. I think it’s what you—what the previous Guardians—would want me to do.”

“Let’s not make any rash decisions, shall we?” Marianne made herself known again, feeling now was the best time to intervene. She placed herself in between the trembling girl and her former mentor, holding one frigid hand between both of her own and keeping her voice soft. “Marinette, you’re welcome here until you decide what to do next, all right? Now, how about some rest?” A bit glassy-eyed, Marinette nodded.

Once their guest was sound asleep, Marianne returned to the living room. Fu was in the same spot, still as a statue, watching the sky through the open curtains. “I think we need to be more delicate about this,” Marianne said, pulling her chair next to his.

“You may be right, Dear. It really is a shame,” Fu’s voice quivered, and in the dim lamplight, Marianne saw a single tear glistening on her love’s cheek. “The heart is such a delicate thing.”

~~~~

**One Week Later**

Marinette Dupain-Cheng was up before the sun, taking her restlessness out on the lump of bread-dough in front of her.

It felt good to be on her feet again. Moving her hands and creating something tangible. The first few days at this house had been spent curled up under a blanket, drowning in self-pity, weighed down by her shame and guilt. Part of her insisted that she was seeking refuge. As much as she agonized about Chat, her family and everyone in Paris, she told herself that she needed to clear her mind this week, to use her borrowed time here to make the best decision possible. Another voice inside mocked her, insisting that ‘seeking refuge’ was a generous way of saying she’d run away. She was still running. She was avoiding the news, hadn’t turned on her phone, even though Mme. Lenoir had been kind enough to buy her a charger. Keeping her eyes closed, ears plugged, Miraculous hidden in her pillowcase—this wasn’t how a Guardian should act.

Whichever part of her was right, the dogged optimist or the sneering self-critic, she needed to make a choice. Soon.

During her hasty exit, the thought had briefly entered her mind that Mme. Lenoir should be the next guardian candidate, the next person to find a new Ladybug. But that thought withered the more time she spent under her former Master’s roof. Not because she would be unsuitable, but because she didn’t want to disrupt their quiet life together, to drudge up Fu’s sadness any more than she already had.

The next clear option was Chat. Marinette had taken scrupulous notes during her Guardian training, pored over the photocopies of the grimoire that were hidden in Master Fu’s mailbox along with his letter. She could gift these things to him, as they were given to her. Silly as he could be at times, Chat was one of Marinette’s closest friends. Reliable, honest, compassionate. She had no doubt he’d make a great Guardian. But could she place that burden on him and then just… leave? Live blissfully unaware once whatever feelings had grown between them over the years, friendship, trust, unspoken love, vanished in an instant? It all seemed so wrong, so unfair.

Marinette felt on some level that her older self would have pulled the trigger on one of these options sooner. She would have accepted that, accidentally or not, she had broken the rules, and that was that. But now, being near Master Fu and considering her situation endlessly, there was a third scenario that felt more and more real, even though she’d first dismissed it as arrogant. Could she… continue to be Ladybug? Even if her identity was forfeit?

It wouldn’t be simple. There was someone she knew she needed to confide in, even if she hadn’t been ready at first. As she sat basking in the heat of the oven, Marinette dug in her pocket, fingers brushing the case where the Ladybug Miraculous resided. She had closed herself off from everyone, even her kwami, but now…

Slowly, slowly, she opened the lid.

“Marinette!”

At the sound of Tikki’s voice, tears made tracks down Marinette’s cheeks. “I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I’m so sorry, Tikki.”

The little creature soothed her owner, wiping away her tears and nestling close to her heart. “Don’t worry, Marinette. It’s okay. Everything will be okay.”

For awhile, they were both silent, watching the sunrise stretch across the sky as they calmed down and took comfort in each other’s presence. Finally, with dry eyes, feeling braver than she had in a long time, Marinette spoke. “Tikki, have the Ladybugs of the past ever… broken tradition?”

Tikki didn’t hesitate. “All the time.”

“Really?”

Tikki nodded. “The world changes, no one can stop that. Humans, too, are always changing their minds or acting on changed hearts. That means that nothing is set in stone. There was a rule at one point that bearers of the Miraculous were forbidden from falling in love for fear that it would distract from their purpose. Do you know who took issue with that and changed it?”

Marinette was in awe. “Ladybug did?”

“She did. She and Chat Noir were deeply in love, and that made them stronger than they could ever be alone.” Tikki smiled pointedly, and Marinette felt her cheeks warming and a twinge of hope in her chest. She didn’t have to leave Chat after all?

“It smells good in here. Are you baking for us, Marinette?”

“Master!” Tikki made a beeline for Fu, who was leaning against the kitchen’s entryway, before thinking better of it and freezing midair. “Oh, I… I’m sorry. I must be a shocking sight.”

“No, it’s okay. You’re Tikki, right? Amazing,” Fu held out his hand, lightly stroking Tikki’s head when she landed there. He turned to Marinette. “I don’t mean to eavesdrop, but are you considering going back to Paris and continuing your time as Ladybug?”

Marinette avoided his eyes, a bit sheepish. “Yes, Ma—Monsieur.”

“I’m glad.”

Marinette’s mouth gaped. Now she couldn’t help but stare, noting his conflicted expression. “Why?”

Before he answered her, Fu sat down at the kitchen table, and gestured for Marinette to do the same, opening a tiny pot of sugar cubes and offering one to Tikki. “Marianne has done the best she can to shield me from the pain of my amnesia,” he started, watching the kwami happily devour the snack. “I am lucky to have such a wonderful woman in my life, I love her very much. However, I would not wish my fate on my worst enemy, much less a girl with as bright a future as you.”

Marinette’s heart sank. Her next question was cautious. “If you don’t mind me asking, what is it like? Your condition, I mean.”

Fu scratched his beard in thought. “When I hear things about myself, it’s like listening to a fictional story, but all of the emotional beats hit harder than they should. My gut feelings and my rational mind are never quite in harmony. To put it another way, my old memories are an itch I can never quite scratch.”

“You did what you did to protect me,” Marinette said quietly. “To protect everyone. Do I have the right to act selfishly? To put everyone in danger?”

Fu laid his hand over her own. “Marinette, I don’t know what advice I would have given you in the past. It may not even be my place to say anything, the failure that I am. But from the minute you appeared at our door, I have wanted to tell you not to give up.”

_Do not give up._

The sentiment was like pure sunlight, warming Marinette from head to toe. For the second time that day, her eyes welled up, half out of worry and half out of gratitude. She hugged him, the man that would always be her teacher. “Thank you, Master. Tikki?” She turned to her kwami with a very Ladybug smile. “We’re going home.”

~~~

Adrien hesitated a moment in front of his mother’s portrait. He knew that his father was away, and Plagg had conveniently blocked the security cameras, but years of conditioning left him hesitant to go back to the basement.

He hadn’t been down there since finding the strange book by accident almost two years ago. He and Chloe used to play there as kids, but ever since his mother’s disappearance, his father forbade anyone, staff and family alike, from entering. But these were desperate times. He was supposed to be in his room, studying with Nino via FaceTime, but Nino and Alya were visiting Marinette’s parents, and what his father didn’t know wouldn’t hurt him.

Overcoming his hesitance, Adrien pressed a hand against the painting, revealing the secret passage and stepping into the tiny elevator. He wasn’t sure how much the basement had changed since he last set foot there—the elevator was new—but there was sure to be a place to hide the akumas.

When the doors opened soundlessly, he noted that the lights were on. Strange. His Chat Noir instincts kicked in, and he kept to the walls, keeping his eyes and ears peeled for anything out of the ordinary. The garden was smaller than he remembered, full of vibrant flowers and a veritable horde of white butterflies.

_Weird,_ Adrien thought, _I didn’t know Father keeps butterflies as a hobby._

Before he could think about it too much, a door swung open, and Adrien dove into a dark adjacent room. He could hear multiple sets of footsteps getting closer. Muffled voices.

“That is why we’ve called you in, Miss Rossi—”

_Nathalie? And Lila?_ Adrien’s thoughts were a chaotic blur. _What were they doing in his basement?_

“—I see. I would do anything to help Mr. Agreste—”

Adrien strained his ears. What did this have to do with his father?

“—come this way.”

A third voice. Unmistakable. Adrien’s blood went cold in his veins, that was definitely his father. Only, his father was supposed to be in Japan. His breathing growing shallow, heartbeat pounding in his ears, Adrien felt the tiniest tap on the bridge of his nose. In the few beams of light shining through the darkened room’s entrance, he caught sight of a fluttering butterfly, its wings glowing white. The pieces began to connect. His eyes fell to the box in his hands.

_No. This can’t be true._


	4. Painful Truth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ryuko, Queen Bee and Viperion battle multiple Marinette-related akumas in the city; Adrien finds out a devastating secret.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for your patience with this one! My original plan was for this fic to have five chapters, but Chapter 4 has so much going on that it makes more sense to split it up (cramming everything together would be ROUGH). So, six it is! Hope that's okay :)
> 
> Also, special thanks to Rikka for beta-reading <3

Kagami Tsurugi was having a rough week.

There were many reasons for that. She hadn’t slept much as of late. Her eating habits had fallen off, and sneaking around outside her mother’s purview was damn near impossible, superpowers or no. Her exhaustion wasn’t just physical, either. In the last seven days she’d discovered that one of her first and best friends/unrequited crushes was Ladybug, and her best friend/ex/object of lingering feelings was Chat Noir. Observing Adrien’s palpable desperation and worry at Marinette’s absence made things painfully clear—they were perfect for each other.

Of course, Kagami wasn’t so petty or selfish as to put her own angst over the chaos and destruction of Paris. It was more of an afterthought, really. A rabbit hole reserved for rare moments of quiet. Most of the time, Kagami maintained her state of practiced calm-under-pressure, keeping the swirl of god-where-is-Marinette, what-if-Adrien-faints-again, I-want-to-sleep-so-bad bubbling unseen under the surface.

This careful balance was vital in tackling the most immediate thing disrupting the dragon holder’s peace of mind in that moment. Namely, the several reported akumas stationed at key landmarks around the city. The witnesses hadn’t given names, but if Kagami had to guess, she’d say that Hawkmoth was making a power play to lure out Ladybug. With Alya and Nino not immediately available, and Adrien not responding to their messages, the remaining three heroes had decided to split up take the villains down individually.

“I’m near the Trocadéro. No sign of an akuma yet, but I’ll keep you guys updated.” Viperion’s voice came through her communicator, laid back even in a crisis.

“Ryuko, reporting from _les Champs Elysées_. I have eyes on Befana,” Kagami responded. “Currently in pursuit.”

“Queen Bee, here. There’s a sentient loaf of bread stomping around the Louvre. Talk about lame.” ‘Sentient loaf of bread’, could it be Bakerix? Kagami didn’t have much time to consider Queen Bee’s words, she had her own villain to deal with.

“Oh Marineeette, your Befana grows tired of your cowardice! Face your failure like a big girl!”

The cackling villain soared over the tree-lined pathway on her flying motorbike, turning anyone unfortunate enough not to have evacuated into coal statues. Ryuko gave chase, leaping from treetop to treetop in a frantic attempt to strike her down. Keeping this up was a waste of energy, she needed a new tactic. “As Marinette’s family, isn’t it your job to support her, witch?” she called, hoping to goad the akuma into engaging her.

“There can be no love when betrayal reigns!” Befana sneered, putting her rampage on hold to hover just above the reach of the hero’s sword, her blaster trained on the girl’s forehead. “As one of the betrayed, you should know that as well as I do, Ryuko. If you’ll join me, I’ll consider not turning you into a pile of rubble.”

There was a moment of tense silence. Ryuko kept her lips pressed in a line, subtly observing the villain’s posture on the bike. “Is that a no, then?” Befana cocked her weapon. She was within point-blank range.

In answer, the dragon hero raised a certain finger, her eyes shining with provocation. Befana snarled. _BAM!_ “Wind Dragon!”

Ryuko disappeared into a powerful gust of wind, blowing the pellet and blaster harmlessly aside, knocking the bike off-course and tearing its rider from her perch so that she flapped like a frenzied kite. With Befana desperately clinging to the handlebars, Ryuko appeared in the bike’s seat and revved it up to keep it from crashing. She had minimal experience with motorcycles, much less flying ones, but there was no time like the present to learn. “Aaaah!” Befana shrieked as the bike tore through the sky. She could barely keep ahold of it. “Slow down, you insolent brat!”

Kagami’s lips quirked into a sly grin as she spotted a police station coming up ahead. “Can do.” She abruptly cut the gas, pulling another scream from the villain as she made her halting descent. When they touched the ground, Kagami leapt to the bedraggled Befana and secured her before hailing the police.

“We’ll come back with Chat Noir to destroy the akumatized object,” She clarified, her attention pulled away from the struggling villain at the sound of stomping in the distance. “I have to go, thank you for your help, officers.”

It was only in her pursuit of the commotion that Kagami realized how quiet Chloe had been during her altercation with Befana. She had conditioned herself to tune out the bee hero’s action-movie noises and uppity nonsense so they didn’t disrupt her concentration mid-fight, but this time, there was no nonsense to speak of. That either meant that Chloe was sleep-deprived or she was concentrating so hard on her own battle that there was no time for stupid comments. So which was it?

Her internal question was answered as a giant bread-man rounded a corner into Kagami’s line of sight, advancing abnormally fast for his size and leaving a trail of shattered glass and warped metal in his wake. Ryuko came to a stop on a nearby rooftop and unsheathed her sword, poised to attack as he thundered closer. Where was Chloe?

“Lightning Dragon!” she called when the akuma had closed the distance. The current crackled as it coursed through the monster’s body, and the smell of toast filled the air. Ryuko leapt from the roof and landed atop Bakerix’s hulking head. Would her attack be enough to stun him?

The monster did pause in its tracks, but not because it was immobilized. No, the heap of crispy carbs was _angry_. He attempted to balloon to a bigger size, but Lightning Dragon seemed to have sapped his strength. Full of rage, Bakerix began to thrash his head wildly, trying his damndest to toss Ryuko off, raging bull-style. Kagami clung on for dear life, adrenaline surging, but her grip was slipping. She had to do something, this unchecked temper tantrum was a recipe for more collateral damage. As he aimed one of his giant fists at her head—

“Venom!” Queen Bee’s familiar war-cry pierced the air, and with one strike of her top, the villain froze, his knuckles coming to a stop a hair away from Ryuko’s nose. She gulped.

“Your Majesty,” Kagami panted, sliding down the beast’s back and onto solid ground. She gave Chloe a tiny bow of gratitude before continuing with a dry smirk, “Took you long enough.”

“Excuse me?” Chloe got in her face, hands planted on her hips. “Who was it that just saved your life, Lizard Breath?”

Ryuko rolled her eyes. “We don’t have time for extensive banter. Go fuel up so we can help Viperion with the rest of the villains.”

“Always so pushy,” Chloe grumbled, but she slunk out of sight to detransform.

Kagami’s gaze fell on the squad of police cars pulling up beside the scene of the fight. “Can you restrain Bakerix, Officers?” she asked. “We’ll be back for him soon.” There were lots of wide eyes and bewildered nods in response to her request, but basic instructions would be good enough for the moment.

“Much appreciated, everyone!” Queen Bee returned, re-transformed, and shot the officers her most captivating wink. “We heroes couldn’t save Paris without your help.”

“Viperion, have you located any akumas?” Kagami muttered, ignoring Chloe’s antics.

“Two,” came Luka’s answer through the comms. “But they’re unusual. Instead of attacking outright, they’re avoiding me at all costs. I can’t get close.”

“Where are you?”

“Near the Trocadéro Garden,” He responded, somewhat out of breath. “There’s some kind of huge plant growing there. Second cha—!”

His message was cut off, leaving only static. Ryuko grit her teeth. She glanced at Queen Bee, whose bubbliness had given way to a serious expression, and with a shared nod, they took off in Viperion’s direction.

They could see the akuma’s creation, even before they were close enough to make out the details. It was a mass of tangled vines and jagged thorns stretching toward the sky like a castle tower, its rough wildness a stark contrast to Trocadero’s beautifully-manicured garden. Even from the roofs of the surrounding buildings, there wasn’t an easy way for the heroes to reach the top. News helicopters circled overhead, presumably trying to catch sight of whoever was inside.

“This looks like something out of a children’s story,” Chloe gaped as they reached the creation’s colossal roots. She reached out and brushed one of the leaves with her fingertips. “You think they’ll ask us to let down our hair?”

Kagami frowned. She stared hard, but the structure was too tall to see anything clearly. From the tower of greenery and the association to Marinette, she guessed that one of the akumas was Weredad. But Marinette’s mother had never been akumatized prior to this point, so did that mean the second was a new villain? Was she assuming too much to think Marinette’s parents would work together, even akumatized?

One thing was for sure, the akumas had Nadja Chamack and her crew’s full attention. The sound of helicopter blades roared in Kagami’s ears, and she cursed her inability to make out what they were saying. To top it off, there was no sign of Viperion. “Guess we have to climb this thing,” she muttered.

“Look out!”

Before she could so much as grab on, Kagami was knocked aside, laid flat on the grass by something fast and heavy. Behind her, a shrub was zapped by a blinding beam of light, promptly crystalizing and becoming transparent.

“Sorry to be so rough,” Came Viperion’s voice close to her ear. “But this is the fourth time you’ve tried to climb that thing. Didn’t want you to turn to… whatever this stuff is.” For emphasis, he reached up to touch one of the shrub’s glasslike leaves and it crumbled away.

“Much appreciated,” Ryuko huffed. Her friend helped her to her feet, and Queen Bee, who had taken cover behind a fountain, ushered them to join her. A second beam headed straight for them, blindingly bright, and Kagami braced herself for their cover to be blown. Instead, it came up short and glanced harmlessly off the surface of the water, hitting a lamppost instead. _Peculiar_ , Kagami noted.

“Who are they?” Chloe scowled.

“Weredad and Queen Verity,” VIperion answered. Though he didn’t appear physically tired, Kagami could read the exhaustion of failed attempts in his teal eyes. “Ten tries and I haven’t been able to coax them down, and they have an enormous advantage from up there. Last time I got pretty far up the tower and heard them disparaging Marinette to the media. Looks like they’re trying to goad her into showing up.”

“Just like Befana, then.” Kagami’s eyes narrowed.

“Bakerix, too.” Chloe confirmed. “That must be Hawkmoth’s plan. Get to Dupain-Cheng through the people she loves most.”

“It’s weird, though.” Luka put a hand to his chin. “In round six, I was able to steal and break what had to be Weredad’s akumatized object, but nothing changed.”

“You must have guessed wrong.” Chloe shrugged. “Or the object changed?”

Luka shook his head, adamant. “That’s not usually how it goes. It was the same object on file for the original akuma, I’m sure of it. But it’s been tough to get close enough to check again.”

“What are you saying? That these things aren’t akumas?” Chloe looked skeptical.

Kagami let the idea sink in for a beat. They had all just assumed they were fighting akumas, but could there be another factor at work, here? “Alya and Nino,” She spoke her realization aloud, her mind racing. “They went to see Marinette’s parents today. Don’t you think they would have been the first to notice if Sabine and Tom were akumatized?”

“You have a point,” Luka nodded. “Plus, these two have a different feel than most akumas. A different rhythm.”

“What does that even mean?” Chloe threw up her hands. “I’ll admit this situation is weird, but you can’t deny that whatever those things are, they damn well _look_ like akumas.”

After two heartbeats of shared silence, all three heroes’ faces lit up in a collective ‘lightbulb’ moment. “Sentimonsters.” They said in unison.

“Accurate visually, but with a different tempo.” Luka recounted.

“And destroying the original object does nothing,” Chloe added, brows arched.

“Should we test our theory?” Kagami grinned. “Queen Bee, you have a hand mirror, don’t you?”

“Always.” Chloe presented it like a crown jewel. “What do you need it for?”

In lieu of an answer, Ryuko put her plan in motion, darting out from behind the fountain and acting like the biggest fool imaginable—in other words, she did her best Chat Noir impression. She leapt up and down, twirled her sword, waved her arms in a flapping motion. She knew the villains wouldn’t be able to hear her, but she called out anyway to add to her boisterous character. “Hey! You rotten scoundrels! I would bet my life savings you can’t hit me down here! Why don’t you try? Your aim, to borrow a phrase from Carapace… SUCKS, BRO!”

Kagami would have been embarrassed to act so silly, but she had no time for that. Queen Verity soon took notice of her tomfoolery and began a barrage of attacks aimed at the dragon hero. Kagami rolled out of the way of the first beam, leapt over another, twirled to avoid the third, searching for the perfect shot, the perfect angle.

Suddenly, she saw it—her chance, approaching as if in slow motion.

She held up Chloe’s hand mirror, and as she suspected, the beam ricocheted off the reflective surface, straight for the plant itself. The thick foliage began to transform, crawling with fragile, transparent crystals. “All right, everyone, Charge!” Kagami struck, putting as much power behind it as her superhuman strength allowed. Likewise, Chloe cast her top, and Luka hurled his lyre.

The structure began to shudder, cracks spiderwebbing across its surface with every blow. The thick tangle of vines had appeared unbreakable, but the tower was hollow in the middle, and with its base compromised, the crystalline substance couldn’t hold the weight of the rest.

“Timber!” Chloe screeched, dashing out of the way as the ‘beanstalk’ came tumbling down with an ear-splitting _THUD_.

The sentimonsters were not pleased about this development. They had somehow managed to land safely, and Kagami felt a small wave of relief that they weren’t real akumatized victims—otherwise, her plan would have been much too dangerous. Nonetheless, they were here. Within reach.

“How bold of you!” Queen Verity sneered from the crest of the felled tower, her regal cape fluttering in the wind and her gaze sharp as she raised her scepter in their direction. “I suppose this means you want a more personal death than to fall to a sharpshooter. Will close-range be to your satisfaction?”

“In light of recent events, I don’t think you have much room to warn us about falling, Your Highness.” Viperion smirked.

Queen Verity scowled, Weredad was shaking with rage, muscles rippling, ready to avenge the destruction of his tower. The heroes tensed up, taking their fighting stances.

But instead of charging, the sentimonsters’ limbs went slack, their eyes glazed over, faces haloed in the glowing peafowl insignia. They were almost statuesque, so still and quiet, until Queen Verity gasped, uttering two curious words: “She’s here.” With that, they seemed to forget they had ever had the urge to fight, instead making a beeline in the opposite direction.

“Follow them!” Ryuko cried.

The three of them began their pursuit, the news helicopters following overhead, on guard in case the sentimonsters attempted to shake them off their tail. But they didn’t seem to care anymore, they ignored the heroes completely and focused on fleeing. Or rather, Kagami noticed, they were focused on reaching a set destination: The Eiffel Tower.

“You think the peafowl holder gave them a new order?” Chloe asked as she swung through the city, barely managing to keep the villains’ retreating forms in her line of sight.

“No,” Kagami answered, warm anticipation mixing with adrenaline in her chest despite the dire situation. “I think they’re following the order they’ve had from the beginning.”

“That means,” Kagami could hear the smile in Luka’s voice through the comms. “Ladybug is back.”

Ladybug. Valiant heroine, trusted friend, essential ally.

_Marinette._

Sure enough, the heroes spotted the telltale red of her suit high atop the Jewel of Paris, locked in a bout with another ‘akuma’ that Kagami didn’t immediately recognize. And sure enough, the two remaining sentimonsters had started a steady ascent toward their true target.

“Who is she fighting?” Chloe gasped, readying her yoyo, a plan to keep them from reaching Ladybug evident in her expression.

“Hawkmoth already invoked the image of her parents, her close relatives. And it’s not a replicate of an akuma we’ve already seen.” Luka pondered. “Could it be one of her classmates? Close friends?”

“A-Adrien?”

Chloe and Luka snapped to attention at Kagami’s horrified expression. “What? Is Chat here?” Luka squinted to try and get a better look.

“No. That sentimonster… is modeled after Adrien.” Kagami clarified. “That charm on the villain’s lance. Adrien always wears it. Whoever is creating these sentimonsters must be personally involved with him to know something like that.”

“Y-You don’t think—?” Chloe stuttered. “Adrien hasn’t responded to any of our messages.”

Chloe hadn’t said it, but the implication was clear: _Maybe Adrien was akumatized_. The thought made Kagami’s blood boil. All of the barely-contained fear and anxiety of the day began to surge forth, unchecked. Closer. She had to get closer and prove Chloe wrong. She clenched her fist, and before she could think better of it, she was chanting, “Water Dragon!”

~~~

**Earlier**

It took every drop of willpower Adrien Agreste could summon not to shut down.

As he listened to the three muffled voices, three sets of footsteps trailing into a room he’d never seen before, it was all he could manage not to give himself away. He was shaking, heart hammering painfully in his chest, making every effort to breathe evenly instead of gasping. It had been a long time since he’d had a panic attack—the last one had come with the loss of his mother—but now his whole body was crying out in distress.

His father was Hawkmoth.

Why? Why torment the citizens of Paris? What could he want with their Miraculous? Why go after his friends, his colleagues, his son? Adrien knew Gabriel had never been able to accept his mother’s disappearance. It hurt so much to lose her, but it was even worse to see his dad suffering alone, cutting himself off from everyone. Adrien’s guilt led him to accept so much: being pulled away from the few friends he had, isolated from society and molded to fit his father’s image of the perfect child.

Chat Noir was his escape, a means of expressing his true self. To think that the man who necessitated Chat’s existence was the same man keeping him ‘protected’ and alone. How had he not seen it before? The seclusion, the disappearances, the strange book. There had been times when Adrien suspected his father, but he never wanted to believe he would go through with something like that. They were family.

He still didn’t want it to be true.

“Adrien,” Plagg’s voice interrupted Adrien’s spiraling train of thought, and the concerned kwami landed on one of his clenched fists. The boy blinked, realizing he held the box of Akumas in a death grip.

“Plagg, you followed me?” He choked out, his focus briefly shifting to the tiny god.

“We need to leave, kid.” Plagg’s gaze was serious. “Let’s get somewhere safer.”

“Plagg, my father… my dad… Why?” before he realized it, tears were streaming down Adrien’s cheeks.

“This isn’t your fault, Adrien.” Plagg flitted from cheek to cheek, trying to wipe them away. “But we need to go. As soon as he transforms, Hawkmoth will be able to sense your emotions. You could become a target.”

“I know.” Adrien took a deep breath, let it out slowly. His heartbeat was still out of control, his mind was still racing, but there was something so wrong about running away without learning anything. Despite his body’s protests and Plagg’s urgency, Adrien scrubbed his eyes, his words soft but resolute. “Claws out.”

“Adrien, wai—!”

Plagg was cut off by the transformation, and as Chat Noir, Adrien crept out of the shadows and pressed himself against the unfamiliar door, his enhanced hearing allowing him to make out the conversation happening on the other side.

“—from the Eiffel Tower. This will be very difficult to execute, but I have made preparations to ensure authenticity. Do you think you can handle it, Mlle. Rossi?” Nathalie’s voice. Hearing it again made Chat shiver. Had she been a part of this from the beginning, too?

“If you’re in the market for convincing lies that will get under Dupain-Cheng’s skin, there’s no one better suited for this than me.” Lila’s confidence was sickening.

“I do hope so.” The cold callousness in his father’s tone was a dagger to Adrien’s chest. “It’s a risk to use Catalyst’s power amplification on someone so inexperienced rather than using my own abilities. If this little stunt fails, consider your affiliation with the Agreste brand, and with my son, terminated.”

“U-Understood, Monsieur.”

“Good,” Chat could hear Nathalie’s heels click as she took dainty steps. “Let’s not waste any time. The command to engage the Peafowl Miraculous is—”

The Peafowl? That could only mean that Mayura—

“Dusuu, spread my feathers!”

With Lila’s command, blue light seeped through the cracks in the door, and Chat’s every instinct screamed that he was out of time, there would soon be a purple light to follow the blue, and the smart thing to do would be to get as far away as possible. But his body wouldn’t move. His reality was shattering, and Adrien could not leave until he was certain this wasn’t a bad dream.

“Nooroo.” His father’s voice boomed. Adrien took a shaky step back. “Dark wings, rise!”

He ran.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! This story was created for the January exchange in the Miraculous Fanfiction discord! Come join us for writing, reading and shenanigans: https://discord.gg/vRRUFj


End file.
